The present invention relates to a knitting method of knitting a stripe pattern into a tubular fabric by using a flat knitting machine, wherein a yarn switching is performed in the course of knitting of the tubular fabric to minimize stitch level difference produced at the yarn switching point, so as to prevent disfigurement of the knitted fabric, and to the stripe patterned fabric.
A tubular fabric can be knitted by using a flat knitting machine in such a manner that a front knitted fabric and a back knitted fabric are suspended in layers from their respective needle beds and their loop courses are cyclically knitted, with a yarn fed to the front fabric and the back fabric in an alternate order, so as to be joined together at each widthwise end thereof.
An example of a general method of knitting a tubular fabric of a plain knitted structure by using the flat knitting machine is shown in FIG. 5. xe2x80x9cFxe2x80x9d at the left side of the diagram indicates a front needle bed, xe2x80x9cBxe2x80x9d indicates a back needle bed, xe2x80x9cA-Oxe2x80x9d indicate needles of the front needle bed, and xe2x80x9ca-oxe2x80x9d indicate needles of the back needle bed. FIG. 6 is a loop diagram showing in development a part of the knitted fabric part around the yarn switching point. In FIG. 6, the broken line Xxe2x80x94X shows a boundary between a front fabric 103 and a back fabric 105, which corresponds to a left end portion of the knitting width of the fabric, when viewed from on the needle bed. FIG. 6 illustrates that the loop course of the front fabric 103 and the loop course of the back fabric 105 which are formed in one knitting cycle of the tubular fabric are aligned on the same line.
First, in the step 1, a yarn feeder is shifted rightwards to feed the yarn to the needles a-o of the back needle bed so as to make the course knitting of the back fabric 105. In the next step 2, the yarn feeder is shifted leftwards to feed the yarn to the needles O-A of the front needle bed so as to make the course knitting of the front fabric 103. Subsequently, the course knitting in the step 1 and the course knitting in the step 2 are repeated in an adequate number of times to knit the loop courses of a first knitted fabric part 107. Thereafter, the yarn is switched to another yarn of different color and then the same knitting as the knitting mentioned above is made to knit a second knitted fabric part 109. This knitting way that whenever a required number of cycles of courses are knitted, the yarns are alternately switched to each other can produce a stripe patterned tubular fabric 101 in which the first color and the second color are alternately mixed. It should be noted that the stripe patterned fabric defined herein includes a two-tone knitted fabric in which the yarn switching is performed only once. In general, the yarn feeder is initially positioned at either lengthwise end of the needle bed of the flat knitting machine. In this example, the initial position of the yarn feeder is set at the left side of the same and the wale at the left end of the back fabric 105 (at the needle xe2x80x9caxe2x80x9d of the back needle bed) is set to be a starting point of the knitting cycle. The yarn switching is performed in this condition in the illustrated example.
As seen from FIG. 6, when a next loop course is formed after the loop course of the tubular fabric 101 is formed in one cycle knitting, the last loop in the loop course formed in the one cycle knitting is drawn toward a firstly formed loop in the next loop course formed in one cycle knitting. As a result of this, color transition difference is produced at the yarn switching point 102 in the actual knitted fabric, as shown in FIG. 7.
In addition, since cross-over yarns 120, 121 are produced at the yarn switching point at which the cycle knitting begins, it is necessary that after knitting, the cross-over yarns 120, 121 are cut and their edge yarns are drawn into the inside of the tubular fabric 101. Further, a tail end process, such as a darning, is required to prevent the stitches from loosening from the edge yarn thus drawn in.
Thus, when the tubular fabric 101 mixing the stripe pattern therein is knitted in the conventional knitting method, the stitch level difference resulting from the yarn switching is produced distinctively at the boundary between the front fabric 103 and the back fabric 105, thus disfiguring the appearance of the knitted fabric.
Also, since the knitting involving the yarn switching produces the cross-over yarns at the yarn switching point, it involves troublesome tail end process as mentioned above.
In the light of these problems, the applicant of this application previously proposed the method disclosed in Japanese Laid-open (Unexamined) Patent Publication No. Hei 10 (1998)-60758. However, the proposed method is a tubular fabric knitting method wherein the yarn switching point is set at an obscure point of a knitted product, rather than at an end of the knitted product with respect to the knitting width thereof. For example, when a necktie is knitted, the yarn switching point is set at a hidden place on the back side of the necktie. Hence, the previously proposed method is not intended for minimizing the occurrence of the stitch level difference itself. In view of this, the previously proposed method cannot be useful for the seamless knitting of tubular knitwear, such as a sweater and a skirt, having no place for the yarn switching point to be hidden on the back side, unlike a necktie.
It is the object of the present invention to provide a tubular fabric with a stripe pattern that provides a minimized color transition difference resulting from the yarn switching produced at the yarn switching point, to prevent disfigurement of the knitted fabric. It is another object of the present invention to provide a tubular fabric with a stripe pattern that can relieve the tail end process of an edge yarn portion including cross-over yarns produced by the yarn switching.
The present invention provides a method of knitting a stripe pattern in a tubular fabric by using a flat knitting machine comprising at least a pair of front and back needle beds, wherein a front fabric and a back fabric are suspended in layers from the needle beds and their loop courses are cyclically knitted in an alternate order so as to be joined together at each widthwise end thereof, so as to form the tubular fabric; wherein whenever a predetermined courses are knitted, a yarn switching is performed to form the stripe pattern comprising at least a first knitted fabric part and a second knitted fabric part; and wherein a loop of at least either of the first knitted fabric part and the second knitted fabric part is missed and/or tucked at a yarn switching point in the boundary between the first knitted fabric part and the second knitted fabric part, to minimize a stitch level difference produced at that point.
Preferably, at least one loop of adjacent loops in each of the first knitted fabric part and the second knitted fabric part is missed at the yarn switching point.
Further preferably, two loops of the adjacent loops in each of the first knitted fabric part and the second knitted fabric part are missed at the yarn switching point.
Still further preferably, one of the two loops is missed in the knitting of the last but one course of the first knitted fabric part; then the other of the two loops is missed in the last course of the same; then one of the two loops is missed in the knitting of the first course of the second knitted fabric part knitted subsequently; and then the other of the two loops is missed in the sequent knitting of the course of the same.
It is preferable that the method includes the unused yarn edge disposal knitting step that loops to dispose unused yarn edges are formed in the first and second knitted fabric parts at portions thereof in proximity of casting-on and casting-off by using empty needles and then the loops thus formed are laid over given loops in the tubular fabric.
It is further preferable that the loops, which are formed in the knitted fabric parts on casting-off side thereof to dispose unused yarn edges, are laid over the downstream located loops with respect to the knitting direction, and the loops, which are formed in the knitted fabric parts on casting-on side thereof to dispose unused yarn edges, are laid over the upstream located loops with respect to the knitting direction.
Also, the present invention provides a method of knitting a stripe pattern in a tubular fabric by using a flat knitting machine comprising at least a pair of front and back needle beds, wherein a front fabric and a back fabric are suspended in layers from the needle beds and their loops courses are cyclically knitted in an alternate order so as to be joined together at each widthwise end thereof, so as to form the tubular fabric; and wherein a yarn switching is performed to knit the stripe pattern comprising at least a first knitted fabric part and a second knitted fabric part, the method comprising the steps:
a) that a loop of the first knitted fabric part at a portion thereof on the casting-off side next to the second knitted fabric part to be knitted next is missed and/or tucked; and
b) that a loop of the second knitted fabric part at a portion thereof on the casting-on side next to the first knitted fabric part is missed and/or tucked in succession to said step.
Further, the present invention provides a tubular fabric with a stripe pattern, wherein a front fabric and a back fabric are cyclically knitted so as to be joined together at each widthwise end thereof; wherein the stripe pattern comprising at least a first knitted fabric part and a second knitted fabric part is formed in such a manner that whenever a predetermined courses are knitted, two different yarns of a first yarn and a second yarn are switched to each other alternately; and wherein at least either of the first knitted fabric part and the second knitted fabric part is missed and/or tucked at a yarn switching point in the boundary between the first knitted fabric part and the second knitted fabric part.
Preferably, at least one loop of adjacent loops in each of the first knitted fabric part and the second knitted fabric part is missed at the yarn switching point.
Further preferably, two loops of the adjacent loops in each of the first knitted fabric part and the second knitted fabric part are missed at the yarn switching point in such a manner that one of the two loops is missed in the last but one course of the first knitted fabric part; then the other of the two loops is missed in the last course of the same; then one of the two loops is missed in the first course of the second knitted fabric part knitted subsequently; and then the other of the two loops is missed in the sequent loop course of the same.
According to the present invention, the tubular fabric with a stripe pattern comprising at least a first knitted fabric part knitted with a first yarn and a second knitted fabric part knitted with a second yarn is knitted in such a manner that when the knitting is switched from the first knitted fabric part to the second knitted fabric part and vice versa, the needle next to the yarn switching point in at least either of the knitted fabric parts on the cast-on side or the cast-off side is put in the miss position or the tuck position or in the combined position, without feeding the yarn to that needle. As a result of this, the number of courses of the wale (stitch loops) bordering on the yarn switching point is reduced more than the number of courses of the other wale and, as a result of this, the loops formed in the course knitting before and after the miss or the tuck knitting are pulled in each other vertically and thus stretched, thus serving to make the color difference produced at the yarn switching point obscure.
In the case where one loop of adjacent loops in each of the first knitted fabric part and the second knitted fabric part is missed, the color difference is absorbed between the two missed wale. Thus, the color difference can be made obscure, as compared with the case where one loop in only one knitted fabric part is missed.
In the case where two loops of the adjacent loops in each of the first knitted fabric part and the second knitted fabric part are missed at the yarn switching point, or preferably in the case where one of the two loops is missed in the last but one course of the first knitted fabric part; then the other of the two loops is missed in the last course of the same; then one of the two loops is missed in the first course of the second knitted fabric part knitted subsequently; and then the other of the two loops is missed in the sequent loop course of the same, the color difference is gradually absorbed among the four missed wale. Thus, the color difference can be made further obscure, as compared with the case where one loop is missed.
When an unused yarn edge disposing loop is formed at the yarn switching by using the empty needle located next to the yarn switching point and the loop thus formed is laid over a given loop in the tubular fabric, the unused yarn edge disposing loop is woven into the fabric in the sequent course knitting, thus preventing the stitches of the fabric from loosening therefrom.
When the unused yarn edge disposing loop formed in the knitted fabric part at a portion thereof on the cast-off side is laid over the loop located downstream with respect to the knitting direction and the unused yarn edge disposing loop formed in the knitted fabric part at a portion thereof on the cast-on side is laid over the loop located upstream with respect to the knitting direction, these unused yarn edge disposing loops can allow the loops formed at the cast-off and cast-on positions to be interconnected in one course direction as well as in the horizontal direction, and as such can prevent forming any undesirable hole thereat.